


Ten Foot Fuzzy Buddy

by Tennyo



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Asexual Castiel, Bunker Fic, Fluff, Gen, No Romance, Valentine's Day Fluff, kind of maybe - Freeform, photos included
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-15
Updated: 2015-02-15
Packaged: 2018-03-13 00:25:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3360980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tennyo/pseuds/Tennyo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean gets Cas a stuffed animal, and even though it's got a Valentine theme, it's totally not a Valentine's Day gift.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ten Foot Fuzzy Buddy

**Author's Note:**

> I was determined to write a story that does not devolve into romance, but is still full of fluff. I think I succeeded.  
> While proofreading, I noticed I really have a fixation with feeding these boys. 
> 
> This has no specific timeframe, except we'll say Dean's been cured of the Mark, and Cas has become human. For Reasons.  
> Please let me know what you think. I will gladly accept concrit!

Dean hates his life right now. He’s standing in line at a Big Lots in Salina with an enormous pink and red stuffed caterpillar draped over his shoulders. The thing must honestly be ten feet long, easy.  A woman and her young daughter come up behind him, and he hears, “Mommy! Caterpillar!”

He turns, and the woman sheepishly looks at him saying, “We’ve been to three different stores trying to find one of those. It would mean the world to my little girl.”

He gives her a kind smile and says, “The same goes for the person I’m giving it to, as well.”

Honestly, he got lucky as hell, and there’s no way he was giving it up. But, you may ask, why is Dean buying it?

* * *

 

They had been coming back from a hunt a couple weeks ago, when they stopped for supplies. When he and Sam were ready to go, it was Dean’s task to hunt down Cas while Sam checked out. He found him over in the Valentine’s gift section, staring at the stuffed animals. Shit, who knew what kind of ideas the ex-angel was getting in his head?

“Hey, buddy,” Dean started, eyeing the _Bee Mine_ balloon, shaped like a cartoon bee holding a heart, in Cas’ hands. “What’s up?”

Cas looked up at Dean and released the balloon to join the others in their corral at the ceiling. “Sometimes your holidays confuse me,” he said, switching his attention to a stuffed gorilla holding a heart that had _You Make Me Wild_ stitched onto it.

With a shrug, Dean flicked the curled ribbon dangling from a candy bouquet. “Yeah, that’s the human race for ya. We have a tendency to commercialize everything.”

He stared for a moment at the red and pink nightmare of chocolates, cards, and other themed junk for a moment, before turning back to Cas. “Sam’s checking out, so we should…”

“Of course, Dean.” Cas turned to leave the store, but paused as he reached the edge of the Valentine’s section.

Dean followed his gaze to notice an entire top shelf dedicated to enormous red and pink fuzzy caterpillars. Cas gravitated towards them, and reached out to stroke one of the many fuzzy feet dangling off the edge of the shelf. A small smile lit up his face, and he raised his hand to stroke the soft red fur of a caterpillar segment. With a sigh, he dropped his hand and headed for the door. He couldn’t exactly say why, but Dean stopped for a moment longer to stare at the display of stuffed toys before following him.

After that, Dean noticed that Cas seemed to look... lonely. Either that, or maybe just blue. After a couple days of watching him mope about the bunker, Dean took him out to Smith Center to one of the few pubs to be had within a half hour drive. The outing didn’t help, and after only one beer, Cas seemed even worse. When Dean had suggested Cas should talk to one of the women at another table that had been giving them both appreciative glances, Cas had said he was ready to go.

Dean had tried to ask what was wrong, but Cas was adamant he was just tired. When they’d stopped at a gas station to fill up before leaving town, he’d caught the guy petting a tiny stuffed bear in the gifts section. Cas noticed him looking, and he quickly pulled away. While Cas was using the restroom, Dean paid for gas and a couple drinks, then on impulse, included the tiny bear to his purchases, quickly stuffing it into a jacket pocket so Cas wouldn’t see.

The drive back had been quiet, neither one speaking as they made the short trip back to the bunker. The next day, while Cas was outside doing whatever the heck he does out there, Dean slipped into his room and set the small bear on Cas’ nightstand. While he worked in the garage for the rest of the afternoon, he wondered how long it would take Cas to notice.

The smell of something delicious cooking drew Dean back from the cars and into the kitchen. Sam was actually making dinner, and Cas was helping. They’d kind of made a mess of the kitchen, but if whatever it was they were making was as good as it smelled, he’d gladly clean up after. Peeking behind Sam at the stove revealed a large pan full of beef tips, vegetables, and noodles. Sam was pouring a brown sauce over top of everything, and the sizzling sound made his mouth water.

“Ugh, Dean,” Sam groaned, nudging him with his elbow, “You reek like old motor oil. If you want to eat, go wash up.”

Dean turned away with a pout, and noticed Cas chopping green onions. He went over and watched his nimble hands, used to wielding an angel blade, with a kitchen knife instead, quickly making neat little circles out of the green stems.

“What're those for?” he asked.

Cas just scooped the mound of onion into a bowl, then sniffed. “Sam’s right, you do smell. If you want to eat with us at the table, go get clean.”

Grumbling, Dean headed back to his room to grab a change of clothes and a towel. After his shower, he found a table in the library set for three people, and Cas and Sam were bringing out dishes of food. Sam had made a stir-fry dish, and Dean dug into it to get mostly meat and noodles, avoiding as many of the vegetables as he could. Cas had made a soup, and Dean had a small bowlful so the guy didn’t pout. It wasn’t bad, actually.

When they’d finished eating and cleared the table, Dean suggested they watch something, so they reconvened in Sam’s room since he had most of the DVDs. While Dean and Sam fussed over what to watch, Cas disappeared for a moment and then reappeared, a small smile on his face. They’d gotten an early release, pirated copy of season four of Game of Thrones, and settled in to watch.

During the first episode, Dean glanced over at Cas, and saw him with the tiny stuffed bear in one hand, petting it with the other. When Cas noticed him looking, he smiled wide enough to show teeth, leaned toward him, and whispered, “Thank you, Dean. It’s very soft.”

Dean shrugged one shoulder, and turned back to the screen, a warmth filling his chest.

* * *

 

So here he is now, cramming a giant stuffed caterpillar into the trunk of the Impala. They’ve put dead bodies in there, so this shouldn’t be so difficult. And he’d lucked out on finding the one store that still had the damn things anywhere near the bunker. Of course, when he had first arrived, he thought they were out. But he’d seen the giant, smiling head peeking out from underneath a pile of other stuffed Valentine toys. A tug on it had thrown all the other toys onto the floor, and he’d helped a sales associate put them all back on the shelf.

On the way back to the bunker, driving well past the speed limit and passing other cars, Dean still doesn’t know what possessed him to buy the huge stuffed toy, let alone go over an hour and a half out of his way for it. He’s not even sure Cas will like it that much. But then he remembers the light in the guy’s eyes, and how much he seems to like that damn stuffed bear.

Back at the bunker, Dean makes sure the coast is clear before swapping the stuffed toy to the spacious trunk of one of the classic cars for safe keeping. While he’s doing this, he notices there’s something embroidered along the caterpillar’s body. The alternating pink segments spell out the word LOVE, the O shaped like a heart. Shit, Damn it to hell. Why hadn’t he noticed it before? All he can hope is Cas will understand he doesn’t mean it _that_ way.

Dean watches and waits for his opportunity, and it comes three days before the fourteenth. Sam has decided to take Cas clothes shopping, and Dean breathes a sigh of relief that he can now give the guy the stuffed monstrosity and hopefully not view it as an actual Valentine’s gift. When he’s sure they’re long gone, Dean sneaks the caterpillar into Cas’ room.

He flops the thing onto the bed, but there’s a problem. It dangles onto the floor. After a bit of repositioning, he’s got it kind of curled in on itself. As he sits on the edge of the bed, surveying his work, he finds himself stroking the soft toy. It really does feel nice.

On impulse, Dean leans down and rubs a cheek against it. Damn, this would make an awesome body pillow. As an experiment, Dean stretches out on the bed, wrapping the thing so that its body is behind him, a front segment under his head, arms wrapped around its fluffy, huge head. Nuzzling into the softness,  Dean thinks, _I’ll just close my eyes for a second_.

The next time he opens his eyes, he feels so warm. That’s when he realizes there’s a breathing body behind him, on the other side of the caterpillar and slightly spooning him. Dammit, did he fall asleep? Shit. He turns his head, and sees Cas sleeping behind him, the lower part of the caterpillar’s body draped across his waist, face buried into the fur.

As Dean tries to extract himself from the situation, Cas whimpers, and a hand reaches out, grasping at Dean’s shirt. Well, maybe he can stay here just another minute, until Cas settles down again. That warmth floods his chest again, and Dean smiles to himself, as Cas seems to like the gift enough to just curl up behind Dean for a nap after discovering him piled up on the guy’s bed with an absurd looking body pillow.

Some time later, Dean wakes again. Cas is no longer curled around him. _Time to face the music_ , he thinks, as he unravels from the fuzzy length of stuffed caterpillar.

He finds Sam and Cas in the library, sorting through Men of Letters file folders. Sam has been talking about reorganizing everything, and it looks like he’s strong-armed Cas into helping. Before he can turn away, Cas looks up from an armload of files and smiles at him.

Dean panics when it looks like Cas is about to speak, and blurts, “Hey, um… Cas, you wanna help me in the kitchen?”

Cas looks down at the stack of papers in his arms, “I’ve been helping Sam sort through these, perhaps…”

Frustrated, Dean takes the folders out of Cas’ hands, and thumps them on the table. “I’m making tacos and burritos. You wanted to know how to make those, right?”

He turns to Sam, who looks a little confused. “You’re cool with it, right?”

Sam shrugs, “Yeah, I guess.”

Without another word, Dean grabs Cas by the sleeve and drags him from the library and into the kitchen. He lets go of Cas near the refrigerator, and points at the sink. “I’ve got you on chopping duty, so go wash.”

The next few minutes are quiet and tense, with Cas giving Dean a side-eye look as Dean starts browning ground beef in a skillet. When he’s able to turn down the heat and go get the spices, Dean turns to see Cas busy at the island shredding an entire head of lettuce. “Dude, that’s enough. Any more, and Sam will bitch about his precious salads.”

Cas nods, and starts on an onion. After the spices are added and the beef is simmering on low, Dean turns back to Cas, who is almost finished with all the vegetable stuff. Mind awhirl with how to breach the subject of earlier, Dean grabs a block of cheese and a grater. He sits it down and looks at the hunk of dairy before looking up at Cas, who has stopped what he’s doing, and just looks at Dean patiently.

“I have a feeling you want to tell me something, Dean.”

Uncomfortable with Cas’ gaze, Dean stares back down at the stainless steel surface. “Yeah, um… about earlier today…”

“No need to explain, you were obviously tired. Nevertheless, thank you for the thoughtful gift.” Cas looks down at the bowl of diced tomatoes he just finished chopping, one corner of his mouth quirking up. “The fact you remembered means so much.”

Dean clears his throat, and slides over the cheese and grater. “Yeah. Anyway, it’s not a big deal or anything. Shred me a bowlful of this, and I’ll show you how to fold a burrito.”

Supper passes uneventfully, and Dean relaxes when he realizes Cas isn’t going to say anything embarrassing. Over the next couple of days, Cas’ mood seems to have picked up, and Dean’s glad he got him that enormous, stuffed cuddle buddy. Although now he realizes how empty his own bed is, and decides the next time they go shopping, he’s going to get a body pillow, regardless of how much Sam might tease him.

When February fourteenth rolls around, Dean almost forgets what the date is. Everyone goes about their business as usual, and Dean’s browsing through weird news stories. He thinks he might have found a case over in Arizona that looks suspiciously like a Chupacabra. When he goes looking for someone to talk to about it, he finds the bunker empty. It’s too late for Sam’s usual run, and no one’s mentioned going anywhere.

Dean sends Sam a text, ‘Dude, where are you?’ and waits impatiently for a reply.

His phone beeps a whole five minutes later, with ‘Shopping. With Cas. Why?’

‘You didn’t say anything’ he sends back with a scowl.

The implied eyeroll is strong with the next incoming text, ‘I know better than to say anything to you when you have the laptop in your room. It better not be sticky.’

Grinning, Dean replies, ‘I’ll wipe it off with your pillow, bitch’

He waits a few more minutes before a single word comes back, ‘Jerk’

When Sam and Cas get back, they keep Dean busy putting away groceries. Then, Sam says they forgot something, and would Dean mind going to the local store to go get it? He rolls his eyes and grabs his keys, not happy that because they forgot something, Dean has to hunt it down. After a trip to Smith Center, he comes back to find Sam and Cas making hamburgers. _Hamburgers_.

“Dudes, what the hell? If you wanted burgers, you know mine are better.”

“But we’re doing this _for_ you, Dean. C’mon, just this once.” Sam puts on the puppy eyes routine, and Cas, damn his ass, actually looks over at Sam, and then copies him. They’re ganging up on Dean, and he’s powerless to resist the double-whammy.

“Don’t mess up my kitchen,” he says, glowering at both of them. “And don’t ruin my good pan.”

“Yes, mother,” Sam calls as Dean steps through the doorway. He’d turn around and show them who was a mother, but then Dean remembers neither of them ever really had one, and he lets it go.

The burgers aren’t half bad, if not a little too thick, and Dean ends up having two. They got all the toppings, and Dean makes a big deal of piling on extra onions.

“Glad I don't have to sleep in the same room as you anymore,” jokes Sam, and Dean doesn’t miss the glance he gives Cas, or the way Cas looks away. Shit, did Cas tell Sam about the other day?

After they eat, Cas goes to watch something on the crappy old TV they found on the side of a road during a hunt. Its screen is blurry, but Sam rigged an antenna so they could get local channels. It’s set up in a far alcove of the library, and when Dean looks, it appears to be playing a romantic comedy or something. For some reason, Dean actually considers sitting down with the dude to watch it, but he he decides to go to his own room instead, and research that Chupacabra case.

When he turns on the light to his room, Dean sees something on his dresser. It’s a small bear-shaped squeezable honey container, with a pink ribbon tied on. And propped up next to it is a greeting-card shaped envelope. On the front, it just says DEAN in the neat script he recognizes as Cas’.

Inside is a simple children’s themed greeting card, saying, “Won’t you Bee my Valentine?” From: Castiel

Jeez, Sam must have put him up to this. If the whole thing wasn’t so darn cute, he’d be mad, and go stomp off to Sam’s room to make him explain this. But instead, Dean smiles, and sets the card aside before opening the laptop to research that case in Arizona.

About an hour later, he hears a soft knock at his door. “Yeah?”

The door slowly opens enough for Cas to stick his head in. “Do you mind if I come in?”

Dean waves at him to enter, and slides to one side so they can both be comfortable.

“I was wondering what you thought about…” Cas waves his hand over at the dresser where the honey and card still sit.

“Yeah, it’s alright, but... Um, you didn’t have to do that, Cas.”

“I know.”

“What do you mean, you know?”

“I specifically asked Sam for his help with this, and he told me the same thing. But I wanted to do something for you, considering the gift you gave me.”

Shit. “Dude, I told you that didn’t mean…”

Cas holds up a hand, and Dean closes his mouth. “Yes, I understand that you didn’t mean it as a romantic gesture, but... “ He pauses, and for the first time in a long while, Cas looks at him like he can see into his soul. “Everything we’ve done for each other, I wanted to at least reciprocate a token of my affections.”

Dean nearly chokes. His _affections_? Cas tilts his head and does that squinty thing, “You realize that there are multiple forms of love, right Dean?”

It takes Dean a moment to get his bearings, “Pshhh, yeah, of course I know that. I just was afraid you might… uhh…”

“Dean.”

“What?”

“Might we continue to watch _Game of Thrones_ together?”

Dean’s not really sure if that’s a good idea, “Uhh, sure… What about Sam?”

“He’s reading a book and doesn’t wish to be disturbed.”

Oh. “Why not?” Dean holds up the laptop, “Your room or mine?”

Cas smooths a hand across the bedspread, “While I have made an effort to personalize my own room, your mattress is more comfortable.”

The butterflies in Dean’s stomach try to escape out his throat, and he swallows. “Uh, sure. You need extra pillows or something?”

At the suggestion, Cas beams and darts out the door. Dean finds a way to set up the computer so they can both see, and Cas comes back in with that pink and red monstrosity of stuffed caterpillar. “Dude, what the hell?”

“I’ve found that it can be folded in on itself and makes a comfortable backrest. We can share?”

Sure enough, Cas folds it over a couple of times, and it does make a pretty comfy headrest on top of the pillows, and they can both see the screen.

After a couple of episodes, Dean notices Cas yawning. “Hey, you getting tired, buddy?”

“I’m fine, Dean.”

Another episode, and he can clearly see Cas’ eyes drooping. “You’re not even paying attention anymore, are you?”

Cas pouts, and turns over on his side.

“Oh no, you go on back to your room if you’re sleepy.”

“Can’t I stay here?” Cas mumbles.

Dean looks down at him and blinks, then swallows. Cas, stay here? In his room? On his bed? There go those damn butterflies again. If Cas had a suave bone in his body, Dean would wonder if he’s trying to pull something other than being a little shit that doesn’t want to get up and go to his own room. It almost reminds him of when Sam was just a kid and feeling lonely, and he’d insist on bunking with Dean even when they had the extra space.

"You really wanna stay here, buddy?"

"Hmmmph," is all he gets, as Cas tugs on the end of that fuzzy caterpillar and buries his face in it.

Dean looks at Cas, and notices he's in an old t-shirt and sweatpants. Once again, he wonders if this was some kind of set-up. The guy's all ready for bed. Dean can deal with this, it's just sleep. Next to Cas. Taking a deep breath, Dean turns off the laptop and sets it aside. With some nudging, he manages to get that damn caterpillar unfolded and situated so he can actually sleep with the thing on the bed. Then he grabs his toothbrush and a change of clothes, heading for the bathroom to get ready for sleep in privacy.

When he comes back into the room, Cas is snoring softly on his side of the bed. He's all wrapped around his fuzzy companion on top of the covers. Well, if he gets cold, he can crawl underneath. Dean carefully pulls back the covers on his own side, and struggles with the furry monstrosity until he's found something he can deal with.

He and Cas are back-to-back, with the caterpillar under their heads and bracketing them. For a moment, Dean is reminded of Lisa, and how it felt to share a bed for more than just sex. This feels even better, with Cas warm and solid at his back. Maybe it's because they've literally been to hell and back together. And purgatory. And an apocalypse or two. Sure, they've both screwed up along the way, but they've just become even tighter friends. They're family.

Before he turns off the bedside lamp, Dean's gaze lands on the honey bear and cheesy card. "Yeah, Cas," he whispers, "I'll 'bee' your valentine."

Dean sleeps better that night than he has for a very long time. 


End file.
